Full name: Sir Robert Peel Born: 5th February 1788 Invention/Achievement: The establishment of the first Police Force in Britain  Date of introduction/Achievement: 1829 Died: 2nd July 1850

The establishment of the Metropolitan Police by Sir Robert Peel in 1829 can be seen as the first systematic approach to crime prevention and detection in London and the United Kingdom.  

In 1707 Edinburgh had established a Town Guard to police the city and enforce the curfew.  In 1749 Sir Henry Fielding formed the Bow Street Runners to help enforce the law.  However, the establishment of the Metropolitan Police served as a model for urban policing throughout England.  

The Metropolitan Police Act of 1829 established a full-time, professional and centrally organised police force for the greater London area, excluding the City of London, covering an area of seven miles radius from the centre, later extended to 15 miles, directly responsible to the Home Secretary.  

There was strong antipathy towards the idea of the military policing civilians, so the police were not armed and wore non-military uniforms.   

Today there are 31,478 regular police officers in the Metropolitan police force, supported by around 23,000 others, including special constables, community support officers, and other police staff, as well as 120 horses, 8,000 vehicles, three helicopters and 22 river vessels.  The initial budget for the Metropolitan Police was £194,126 while in 2011/12 it was £3,692 million, over two thirds of which went on pay.  

Robert Peel was one of the most influential politicians of the 19^th century.  As well as forming the Metropolitan Police (called "bobbies", after Robert, or "peelers" after Peel) he reformed and simplified the criminal law, reduced the number of crimes punishable by death, and reformed the prison system.  

He twice served as Prime Minister, first from 1834-35, second from 1841-1846.  He promoted Catholic Emancipation, which removed laws restricting the rights of Catholics and supported the Reform Act of 1832, which removed many abuses of the parliamentary system.

During 1846, in the face of strong opposition from vested interests, he pushed through the repeal of the Corn Laws in response to famine in Ireland.  

Peel can also be seen as the founder of the modern Conservative party.  He died on 2^nd July 1850, aged 62, after a riding accident.